page_title: Egg white
section_title: Foam
hierarchical_section_title: Egg white / Foam
caption_attribution_description: English: A Ramos Gin Fizz at the Bourbon O Bar, New Orleans
context_page_description: Egg white is the clear liquid contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms around fertilized or unfertilized egg yolks. The primary natural purpose of egg white is to protect the yolk and provide additional nutrition for the growth of the embryo.
  Egg white consists primarily of about 90% water into which about 10% proteins are dissolved. Unlike the yolk, which is high in lipids, egg white contains almost no fat, and carbohydrate content is less than 1%. Egg whites contain about 56% of the protein in the egg. Egg white has many uses in food and also many other uses.
context_section_description: The physical stress of beating egg whites can create a foam.  Two types of physical stress are caused by beating them with a whisk.  
  The first of which occurs as the whisk drags the liquid through itself, creating a force that unfolds the protein molecules. This process is called denaturation. 
  The second stress comes from the mixing of air into the whites, which causes the proteins to come out of their natural state.  These denatured proteins gather together where the air and water meet and create multiple bonds with the other unraveled proteins, and thus become a foam, holding the incorporated air in place, because the proteins consist of amino acids; some are hydrophilic (attracted to water) and some are hydrophobic (repelled by water). This process is called coagulation.
  When beating egg whites, they are classified in three stages according to the peaks they form when the beater is lifted: soft, firm, and stiff peaks.  Overbeaten eggs take on a dry appearance, and  eventually collapse. 
  Egg whites do not beat up correctly if they are exposed to any form of fat, such as cooking oils or the fats contained in egg yolk.
caption: Aerated egg whites are frequently employed in shaken cocktail recipes, such as this Ramos gin fizz, for textural and aesthetic purposes.
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